While the selectors named an expanded squad, barring injuries the final choice comes down to two players from three

Alex Malcolm05-Nov-20253:09

Australia’s Ashes squad: No Konstas, Labuschagne to open?

It all hinges on Green’s bowling capability

It was known from a long way out that Cameron Green and Beau Webster would be picked in the squad together. The two have played in the same XI in Australia’s last four Test matches. But Green was a specialist batter at No. 3, a spot he had only batted in once in first-class cricket prior, and was not bowling with Marnus Labuschagne opening in one of them before Sam Konstas replaced Labuschagne in the other three.Related

• Hazlewood cleared of injury, Abbott out of first Test after hamstring scans

• Webster takes five on tough day for his Test chances

• The Australia selectors' aversion to risk might have boxed them into a corner

• Cummins feeling good for Gabba, but rest may be needed

• What does Pat Cummins' absence mean for Australia?

Green ended up playing very well in the last two Tests on very difficult pitches in West Indies and was arguably Australia’s best batter across those matches. But now that he’s back bowling, the need for two allrounders as opposed to a better structured batting line-up comes into question.However, Green’s bowling progression from back surgery has not quite gone to plan. He has been bowling in the nets since June without interruption, but has only sent down four overs in matches so far. Some minor side soreness saw him withdrawn from bowling in the last Shield game. He instead bowled in the nets and on the centre wicket post game in order to control the intensity.It is understood he has bowled up to 8-10 overs across multiple spells in singular net sessions already. Bailey confirmed he would bowl 15-20 overs in Western Australia’s next Shield game against Queensland at the WACA ground starting on November 11, which would equate to roughly 8-10 overs per innings. How he gets through those overs and how he bowls from a skill perspective could dictate the shape of the Test XI.If he gets through unscathed and bowls well, and the selectors are confident he can deliver the same if not more in the first Test, that will spell bad news for Webster if the selectors believe the sum of Australia’s parts look better with one allrounder and three specialist top three batters. Webster has done nothing wrong in his Test career so far. He’s made four half-centuries in 12 innings on difficult pitches, averaging 34.63 at No.6. By comparison, Green has averaged 38.72 in his last 12 Test innings with all bar one coming at Nos. 3-4 including his 174 not out in Wellington and his recent scores of 52, 46, and 42 on the nightmare pitches in the Caribbean.Webster also has eight wickets at 23.25 but has benefited from those same pitches with the ball. Green’s home Test record with the ball is far superior to even Webster’s Shield record. Green has 22 Test wickets at 25.63 in Australia, striking at 52.1 including dismissing Joe Root, Zak Crawley and Ben Stokes twice each and Ollie Pope once in the 2021-22 Ashes series.Jake Weatherald’s 94 against WA was his standout innings so far this season•Getty Images

Weatherald could complement Khawaja

The selectors have been desperate to find a solution at the top of the order since David Warner retired. If Green can bowl the requisite overs, and Webster is squeezed out, then Jake Weatherald will be the sixth different opener to partner Usman Khawaja in the last 15 Test matches since Warner retired.Unlike the elevations of Steven Smith, Travis Head and Labuschagne, and the selections of Nathan McSweeney and Konstas, Weatherald is clearly the best performed domestic red-ball opener in Australia over the last 12 months. He has scored 1391 runs at 53.50 in 26 innings since the start of last summer with four centuries and seven half-centuries for Tasmania and Australia A. The fact that Matt Renshaw was so highly fancied by many to pip Weatherald for selection when Renshaw has made 653 first-class runs at 34.36 with three centuries and one fifty in the same period was odd.Beyond the runs, Bailey was extremely complimentary of Weatherald’s style. He has made his runs at a brisk strike rate of 68.65. Khawaja’s Test career rate is 48.56 while Labuschagne struck at 41.47 in his last 14 Test innings before he was dropped. There were times against India last summer where the scoreboard was not moving and it led to Konstas’ inclusion. But Bailey noted that Weatherald’s repeatable method, his first-class experience and the fact his game does not change innings to innings was a big reason for his selection ahead of Konstas.Bailey cited Weatherald’s recent match-winning innings of 94 off 99 against Western Australia in a low-scoring Shield game in Hobart as an example of what he can bring.”That innings is a good example, I think, of what Jake does really well,” Bailey said. “I thought he counter-attacked. It was a wicket that had a little bit in it. Others around him were finding it challenging, and he put pressure back onto the bowlers. And the way he did that, he drove nicely, played off the back foot nicely, he was busy. I think that’s a good example of what he looks like at his best.”Marnus Labuschagne has made five centuries in his last eight innings•Getty Images

Labuschagne opens or bats at No.3

Despite Bailey saying that no decisions have been made on the XI with 16 days to go, it is clear Labuschagne is locked in to return. It would be ridiculous to leave him out after five centuries in his last eight domestic innings for Queensland when the selectors specifically asked him to go away and find his best game after axing him in the Caribbean.But the decision on Green and Webster will dictate where Labuschagne bats. All of his runs for Queensland have come at No. 3. Australia’s selectors do not direct state teams to bat players in certain positions. Labuschagne, as Queensland captain, has batted himself at No. 3 in all those games. It is his preferred position and where he has scored all 11 of his Test centuries. However, he does have two first-class centuries opening the batting and did open in the WTC final. Bailey stopped short of guaranteeing Labuschagne would return to No. 3.”No, not necessarily,” Bailey said. “I think Marn’s got a game that could sit anywhere. It could be three. I think I’ve said a lot in the past if you can bat in the top three, you’ve probably got a skill set that’s capable of opening the batting. I think a lot of those things will be determined by what other resources you need and the makeup of those around you, and is it complementary?”People clearly have spots where they’ve batted the majority of their career and they all have different records when they do change position. But he can bat three, he could open. He’s got the skillset for both, but he’s been looking pretty good of late.”The question of players complementing each other is the biggest hint Bailey could give as to the preferred order. It is clear that the selectors would prefer Khawaja and Labuschagne don’t open together. Labuschagne’s most prolific batting partnerships in Tests have come batting with Warner, Smith, Head and Matthew Wade. He’s averaged above 50 with all four who are busy and free-flowing players at their best and has had multiple century stands with each. He’s had 48 Test partnerships with Khawaja by comparison and averaged 31.61, albeit with two century stands. There is a thought within the Australian camp that Labuschagne is a batting chameleon of sorts in the way that he can mimic his partners style. Whether that is still the case with the remodelled Labuschagne, time will tell.But if Labuschagne is back to his best, then a return of a No.3-4-5 combination of Labuschagne, Smith and Head will certainly look more challenging for England’s attack to penetrate than any alternative.

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has not been one to shy away from his media duties this season, notably embracing his war of words with Wayne Rooney after that famous win over Real Madrid a few weeks ago.

That, however, has been the only thing they’ve really had to cheer about in the last few months. The pressure is intensifying on Arne Slot’s shoulders and just how long he remains in the Anfield dugout remains to be seen.

The Dutchman, who steered Liverpool to a remarkable Premier League title win during his debut campaign in England has made some bold calls of late, notably the decision to omit Mohamed Salah from the last two starting lineups.

The Egypt international was an unused substitute for Sunday’s win at West Ham and was on the bench again for the 1-1 draw at home to Sunderland, the first time in his Anfield career he had not started in back-to-back league matches.

It’s a shocking turn of events for the league’s player of the season back in 2024/25. Skipper van Dijk was asked for his thoughts after the draw with Sunderland.

Van Dijk speaks out on the Salah situation

“It’s not like you have unlimited credit, everyone has to perform,” said Van Dijk when asked whether Salah’s omission had sent a message to the dressing room.

“Mo has been doing that but the manager made that decision in the last two games. We all want the best for the club. I am pretty sure Mo will still be a big part of what we are trying to achieve because he is an amazing player and he has shown it consistently.

“But we are all trying to find consistency and he needs us to be in our best shape and we need him and that’s what we are all trying to find. He is still a fantastic player and we still have to remember there is a reason why he has been so successful at the club and we have to respect that.”

“I need him around as one of the leaders. I’m not worried. He’s disappointed but that’s absolutely normal as if you’re not disappointed when you’re not playing two games in a row then there is an issue as well.”

Van Dijk praises Florian Wirtz

Signed for a colossal £116m fee from Bayer Leverkusen over the summer, this has been an abject campaign to say the least for the German.

In the words of Gary Neville a few weeks ago, he’s been “really bad” and that hasn’t looked like improving. That said, he did make a big impact this week.

It looked like Wirtz had scored his first Premier League goal only to see it go down as an own goal after his effort took a huge deflection off Black Cats defender Nordi Mukiele.

Despite that, Van Dijk was full of praise for the attacking midfielder.

“There’s a very good reason why a club like us bought him – he’s an outstanding, world-class player in my eyes who can only become even better but it will take a bit of time,” said Van Dijk.

“For him he has to stay level-headed. Don’t get dragged into the outside world of when it’s very good or very bad and don’t get dragged into the numbers game. Nowadays there are a lot of eyes on if you score goals or have an assist or keep clean sheets but it is also about what you see and the contribution you have for the team, that’s not just shown in the numbers but in what you see and that should sometimes be the focus.”

Fewer touches than Alisson & only 2 passes: Liverpool flop must be dropped

Arne Slot has a huge call to make about one player after his showing for Liverpool last night.

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By
Ethan Lamb

Dec 4, 2025

Bavuma and Esterhuizen also struck half-centuries in what was the sixth-highest successful chase in India

Shashank Kishore09-Nov-2025Connor Esterhuizen showcased his impressive game against spin in a bludgeoning 52 not out that helped South Africa A beat fading light to chase down 417 five wickets in hand against India A at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. This was the highest fourth-innings chase in a first-class game in India since 2016, and the sixth-highest ever in the country.Esterhuizen’s innings comprised eight fours and a six, as he helped South Africa A convert a tricky chase in the final hour into a cruise. His unbroken sixth-wicket partnership with Tiaan van Vuuren was worth 65 off just 52 balls.While Esterhuizen delivered the knockout blow to India A, the chase was set up by Lesego Senokwane and Jordan Hermann. The openers put on 156, much of it during the course of a wicketless morning session where they took the attack to Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep.Even Kuldeep Yadav wasn’t spared, but it also helped South Africa A that he was far from his best on a surface that didn’t aid spin as much as he would have hoped for. With the surface showing no signs of breaking down, Kuldeep hardly found turn and was easily picked off as Senokwane and Hermann didn’t allow him to settle. When he went full, he was imperiously driven. When he bowled shorter, the turn was so slow that it gave batters enough time to play him comfortably off the back foot.Hermann did the early running when he hammered an off-colour Akash Deep for four boundaries – an off-drive, two cover drives, and a square drive behind point. He soon got to his half-century, off 73 deliveries. India A’s frustration stemmed from the edges not carrying. The lateral movement that was there on the first two days and a bit also went missing.Jordan Hermann scored 91•PTI Senokwane soon followed suit, albeit sedately, getting to his half-century off 113 deliveries. Having played cautiously against the fast bowlers, he was severe on left-arm spinner Harsh Dubey, whom he welcomed with a superb slog sweep. Hermann was equally punishing, using the paddle sweep as Dubey struggled to vary his pace – he was guilty of bowling too quickly.Hermann had a slice of luck on 66 when a rip-roaring bouncer that rushed him for pace lobbed off the glove only to land behind Rishabh Pant as he ran backwards. But even half-chances like those were far and few in between.Prasidh provided the breakthrough when Hermann smashed a full toss back towards the bowler. Fortunately for India A, it got stuck in Prasidh’s hand and Hermann had to walk back for 91. The wicket briefly fired India A’s seamers, Siraj, in particular, as he delivered a telling spell in the afternoon, beating Senokwane a handful of times and then exchanging some words with him.All that seemed to have affected Senokwane as he was lulled into a sweep that he missed and was lbw to Dubey on 77. This brought Zubayr Hamza and Temba Bavuma to the crease – the only two batters from this squad to feature in the Test squad – and they added 107 for the third wicket to bring the target in the double digits.Having bagged a first-ball duck in the first innings, Bavuma was more sedate and copybook in his approach; Hamza was a bit more enterprising and looked to take the bowlers on from the get-go to make a push for the target.In between, India A had a scare when Siraj hurt himself trying to stop the ball at mid-off and immediately rushed off the field for treatment. Pant too didn’t keep for two sessions with Jurel taking over the gloves. It was established much later that the decision to take Pant off the field was keeping in mind the workload he has had over the past two games – with both bat and gloves.Hamza fell when he got an inside edge onto the stumps off Prasidh, and Bavuma fell soon after. India A had an opening with the visitors needing 89 when Marques Ackerman was bounced out by Siraj, only for replays to confirm the bowler had overstepped. Ackerman was eventually caught behind for 24 to bring Esterhuizen to the crease. The mood of the game changed considerably thereafter as he took the attack to Kuldeep and Dubey to seal victory in fading light.

The viral clip of Liverpool’s media manager reacting to Mohammed Salah’s explosive mixed zone interaction on Saturday struck a chord over in Brisbane.Just under 10,210 miles separate Elland Road and the Gabba, where England head coach Brendon McCullum, in the aftermath of a second eight-wicket Ashes defeat, stated he thought the team had trained too much. The sentiments were as far apart as the straight-line distance, but the reaction was still the same: why, oh why, have you gone and said that?The motivation behind McCullum’s comments, which are likely to live in infamy, is far easier to unpick. For this England Test team enjoy the luxury of shelter from the realities of top-level, international sport. A bubble that may be invisible but has long been audible, with the head coach, and, up until his press conference after the second Test, the captain, Ben Stokes, the two prominent voices quipping down missiles headed for their citizens.Related

• Carey expects England to 'refresh the batteries' in four-day Noosa break

• McCullum: England 'over-prepared' in second Test build-up

• Bazball is dead (even if England aren't quite yet)

• Ben Stokes: 'We've not been able to stand up to pressure'

• For England's batters, the heart seems unwilling and the mind unconvinced

Judging by the reactions, McCullum’s latest attempt has only attracted more unfriendly fire. Particularly at him. Though his contract runs until 2027, a deal which takes into account his white-ball head coach role, he will likely be first for the block if things go further south. Depending on how badly it goes – who can rule out 5-0 right now? – he won’t be the only collateral.”When you’re in positions as we are as captain and coach, you wear a lot of that burden,” McCullum said. “You wear a lot of that responsibility and that’s what you sign up for.”Of course, that coddling of their players does not seem helpful right now. In taking away the stresses and strains of Test cricket, England seem to lack the on-field appreciation that this supposed to be hard. It supposed to hurt. The struggle real, even six days into a five-match Test series.You would not wish adversity upon anyone. But in life, one way or another, it comes for us all. What you do wish, above all else, is that the people you care for are equipped to deal with such adversity.The merits of the McCullum and Stokes approach – and, by proxy, managing director Rob Key – are hard to remember at this juncture. But it’s worth trying.For starters, it is worth considering that first summer in 2022, when a team who had won one in 17 successfully pulled off four of their top 15 biggest chases. That included a new best of 378 against India, who also found themselves on the wrong end of the second-highest earlier this year.We can throw in the victory in Hyderabad and, more presciently, the comeback from 2-0 down during the last Ashes series. Ultimately, McCullum has made a home in the intersection of the sports psychology Venn diagram, nestled between what players need to hear and what they want to hear. Suggesting that five days of training leading into the Gabba Test might have been over the top plays on that idea that they wanted it too much.”There’s a fierce determination to succeed in this series, right?” McCullum said. “Sometimes that can get in your own way, clouds your judgement or affects your ability to make the right decisions in the right moments.”It’s a really fine balance between being fiercely driven, competitive and desperate to succeed, and that getting in the way of yourself.”It’s the coaches’ job to find that balance in them as well. I firmly believe it’s not training five days straight in sapping conditions as the answer. We need to keep a little bit in the tank physically, a little bit in the tank emotionally, to be able to allow yourself to embrace the conditions you’re being challenged with.”When you come to Australia, it’s such a stark contrast in each ground you go to and the surfaces you play on, you can’t just have one set preparation. You need to make sure you’re ready for whatever is coming and adapt to it. I didn’t think we were quite good enough at that in this Test with either bat or ball.”McCullum subsequently went on to back Ollie Pope, England’s No. 3 under Stokes and, from 2023 until this tour, their vice-captain. A promising 46 in the first Test at the Optus Stadium, featuring plenty of straight drives that suggested better balance and alignment, was followed by 33, 0 and 26. All four innings ended with wince-inducing dismissals that suggested in-play, in-series regressions despite a lot of hard work in the lead-up. Nevertheless, McCullum – unsurprisingly – is sticking by his man.”I think most people were frenetic outside off stump on this pitch tonight,” he said, which actually makes you wonder why England did not sit on that line during Australia’s mammoth first-innings of 511. “Popey has been number three. He’s done well. He’s averaged 40 odd [40.58] for us. He’s our number three here in Australia.”There was greater support for another Surrey man, Jamie Smith. The newest member of the top seven, the wicketkeeper’s arrival into the team at the start of 2024 was as the best of two worlds, between the glovework of Ben Foakes and the outlandish strokeplay of Jonny Bairstow. Right now, he is falling well short of both.A dropped catch off Travis Head and innings of 0 and 4 were the latest extensions of a batting decline that may be attributed to crouching behind the stumps far more than he is used to. Since the start of the summer, he has kept wicket for 1,375.3 overs across eight Tests. That amounts to around a third of what he has done for his entire first-class career for his county.Having begun the home series with India with scores of 40, 44, 184 not out, 88 and 5, he has averaged 10.14 in the next seven innings.Brendon McCullum speaks to the press•PA Photos/Getty Images

“He’s a flair player, and he likes to approach the game in a simple way,” McCullum said. “He works very hard on his game, but he also has the courage and conviction, when he feels he’s given himself the best chance. It doesn’t guarantee everything but I’m sure he’ll appreciate the conditions in Adelaide with the boundary sizes and the pitch.”That might not be music to the ears of those who feel both are problems to address, particularly Pope. But it will tell them and the rest of the squad – including those yet to see action – that the vibes, at least, remain tight.”One thing we won’t be changing is the language in the dressing room, the way we approach the game and the style we’ve tried to operate with,” McCullum said.”Ultimately, you can’t afford to flinch when come down here. This is not a country to start doubting yourself or to walk away from the challenge. You can’t have a glass jaw when you get to Australia. You’ve got to get up and go on.”The skill level among various players all around the world, there isn’t a stark contrast. It’s those who are able to handle the big moments, able to read conditions quickly and able to adapt, problem-solve situations – they are the ones to excel. If anything, our boys need a freshen up. A few days away wouldn’t be the worst thing.”As the tide goes against them, England will head to the surfers’ paradise of Noosa and try and get back on the board. That they will be joined by journalists and photographers looking for the latest pound of flesh will not deter them from cutting loose and expending the nervous energy that comes with a nine-day lead into the third Test in Adelaide.Typically, McCullum sees the pressure on himself and Stokes as something to savour. After all, it can’t go on like this, can it?”Look, that’s the thing; the captain and I, this is the fun stuff, right? Again, you don’t get to feel sorry for yourselves and both of us stress that. We’re both tough blokes who have been in this kind of pressure in your own careers or your own stages in your own lives. You’ve been in tough situations and there’s only one way to go about it and that’s to have that belief in yourself and trust those around you who you believe in. Make sure you stay tight, keep morale high within the group and keep getting towards what you’re trying to achieve.”If the coach and captain seemed worlds apart on Sunday night in the aftermath of defeat – McCullum chipper, Stokes spent – they will use the coming three-day break to realign themselves before flying to Adelaide on Saturday. The fightback starts here. The hard work, well, that will start at the Adelaide Oval on Sunday.”We’ve been here before, 2-0 down,” said McCullum looking to 2023, “and we came within a bee’s dick of getting ourselves the win, so there’s no point in feeling sorry for yourselves. That ends in all sorts of trouble.”Just pick yourselves up, dust yourselves off, sharpen off a few of the rough areas and keep heading towards the target.”

Aaron Boone's status as Yankees manager will once again be intensely dissected as the pinstripes were bounced from the postseason on Wednesday night by the Blue Jays. Cam Schlittler was unable to replicate his historic October debut and Toronto put the finishing touches on a gentleman's sweep to earn a spot in the ALCS.

Boone was classy in defeat but some fans are beginning to wonder—or continue to wonder—if he's the right guy for the job. As just a quick reminder, the Yankees made the World Series last year but in the case of Boone it's both "what have you done for me lately" and "what have you done for me before that."

Which isn't a defense of the manager, just an observation that few coaching jobs in sports demand success like that of Yankees skipper. Although those who are frustrated by Boone returning year after year might argue that.

Fox's postgame dug into the inevitable conversation after the Blue Jays' 5-2 victory and Alex Rodriguez was quick to offer some perspective.

"Honestly, from the entire organization, [Aaron Boone] is the guy I would circle that is the least to blame," the former Yankees great said.

"He's got a lot of talent but for me personally one of the worst construction of a roster I've ever seen," he continued. "You have three left-handed catchers. You have five DHs. You have a first baseman in and out. It's just a very difficult hand for Boone and honestly they were exposed against a much better Jays team."

Rodriguez makes some solid points. It would be hard for anyone who watched these four games between the AL East rivals to claim that the Yankees were better and fumbled the bag. But that evidence isn't going to make anyone feel better or do much to convince those who want to move on from Boone to stay the course.

Going to be a long winter. And a long season next year if Boone does stays because they're only one thing he can do to quiet the doubters.

MatériaMais Notícias

Com a rescisão do contrato junto ao Vitória de Guimarães, o Vasco tem o caminho livre para acertar a contratação e anunciar Álvaro Pacheco. A situação estava toda encaminhada para que o técnico português chegasse na próxima semana, mas reviravoltas aconteceram nas últimas horas e aceleraram os processos. Saiba dos bastidores com o Lance! abaixo.

continua após a publicidadeRelacionadasVascoÁlvaro Pacheco rescinde com Vitória de Guimarães e se aproxima de ser anunciado pelo VascoVasco15/05/2024VascoVasco dá passo importante para a reforma de São JanuárioVasco15/05/2024VascoAndrey Santos, ex-Vasco, marca primeiro gol na Europa e garante vitória do Strasbourg em clássico na FrançaVasco14/05/2024

➡️Tudo sobre o Gigante agora no WhatsApp. Siga o nosso canal Lance! Vasco

➡️A boa do Lance!Betting: vamos dobrar seu primeiro depósito, até R$200! Basta abrir sua conta e tá na mão!

🗒️ ACORDO INICIAL
Álvaro Pacheco tinha acordado com o Vitória de Guimarães e o próprio Vasco de que faria o último jogo pelo clube português contra o Arouca, partida válida pela última rodada do Campeonato Português. Com isso, o técnico chegaria ao Brasil somente na próxima semana.

🔄 MUDANÇA DE PLANOS
Nas últimas horas, Álvaro Pacheco foi pressionado a sair do Vitória de Guimarães. Segundo informações apuradas pelo Lance!, futuro técnico do Vasco foi comunicado de que se não saísse agora, só sairia, antes mesmo da última rodada do Campeonato Português, só deixaria o clube ao final do contrato. Ou seja, em junho de 2025.

continua após a publicidade

Não era de hoje que o Vitória de Guimarães estava insatisfeito com Álvaro Pacheco. Sobretudo, após o episódio do técnico ter sentado para conversar com o Cuiabá. Nesta época, o clube português ainda tinha chances de se classificar para uma competição internacional.

Em entrevista coletiva, o presidente do Vitória de Guimarães, António Miguel Cardoso subiu o tom. Confira abaixo o que o dirigente disse.

– O treinador sai a custo zero porque, perante um treinador que a 3 dias do fim da temporada pretende sair, o clube não pode ficar refém de uma situação destas. Temos de ter alguém no comando que se preocupe.

😞 SENTIMENTO DE INJUSTIÇA
O Lance! também apurou junto a pessoas de Álvaro Pacheco que o técnico se sente injustiçado, tendo em vista que era um desejo pessoal fazer o jogo da despedida no Vitória de Guimarães, clube pelo qual tem grande carinho.

continua após a publicidade

Além disso, o sentimento é de que foi empurrado para fora do Vitória de Guimarães. Vale destacar que se conquistasse um resultado positivo contra o Arouca, Álvaro Pacheco bateria o recorde de pontuação de toda a história do clube no Campeonato Português.

Apesar de não ter data programada para a chegada ao Rio de Janeiro, a expectativa é de que Álvaro Pacheco chegue a tempo ainda para assistir o clássico contra o Flamengo. O Vasco enfrenta o maior rival neste sábado (18), às 21h, no Maracanã.

Tudo sobre

Álvaro PachecoFutebol NacionalVascoVitória de Guimarães

Freddie Freeman played a crucial role in the double play that clinched the Dodgers' World Series win on Saturday, but he made sure the game ball went to somebody else.

Speaking during the team's celebrations in Los Angeles on Monday, Freeman revealed that he actually passed the game ball off to general manager Dave Roberts, who Freeman believes to be the keepsake's rightful recipient.

"I waited for Doc in his office, right before we sprayed champagne, and I gave it to him and I hugged him," Freeman revealed.

"I said, 'You deserve this more than anybody.' So Dave Roberts has the baseball."

Watch that below:

Talk about a classy move from Freeman, who was nonetheless a huge player this series.

But Roberts, of course, deserves his flowers for managing the game and series particularly well, too. Those watching the game unfold seemed to agree.

"Ultimately," baseball legend Derek Jeter said during the MLB on FOX broadcast, "it’s up to the players to do the job, but [Roberts] puts them in a position to be successful and he pushed all of the right buttons."

"Put him in Cooperstown," added Alex Rodriguez.

With the win, which brings the skipper's overall total to three World Series, Roberts has now surpassed Tommy Lasorda to become the second-most-decorated Dodgers manager in history, behind only Walter Alston, who boasts four WS titles, per .

أعلن الاتحاد الأوروبي لكرة القدم “يويفا” عن الفائز بجائزة رجل مباراة ريال مدريد ومانشستر سيتي في دوري أبطال أوروبا لموسم 2025-2026.

وحل مانشستر سيتي ضيفًا على آرسنال بملعب “سانتياجو برنابيو” ضمن مباريات الجولة السادسة لمرحلة الدوري في دوري أبطال أوروبا.

وحقق مانشستر سيتي الفوز على ريال مدريد بهدفين مقابل هدف، ليرفع رصيده إلى 13 نقطة في المركز الرابع بترتيب دوري أبطال أوروبا.

وحصل على جائزة رجل مباراة ريال مدريد ومانشستر سيتي، نيكو أوريلي، بعد الأداء الذي قدمه خلال المواجهة.

اقرأ أيضًا | مباريات مانشستر سيتي المتبقية في دوري أبطال أوروبا بعد الفوز على ريال مدريد

وقالت مجموعة المراقبين الفنيين التابعة للاتحاد الأوروبي لكرة القدم: “قدّم أوريلي لاعب مانشستر سيتي أداءً مميزًا، حيث لعب في مراكز مختلفة وسجّل هدفًا حاسمًا، كان ذكيًا تكتيكيًا كظهير أيسر”.

واختتمت: “كما اضطلع بأدوار متعددة في استحواذ مانشستر سيتي على الكرة، وكان عنصرًا أساسيًا في تحولاتهم الهجومية في الشوط الأول، وساهم في إيقاف هجمات ريال مدريد بعد الاستراحة”.

In an astonishing set of quotes, Liverpool superstar Mohamed Salah has thrown his own future at Anfield into doubt after being left on the bench in the 3-3 draw with Leeds United on Saturday.

The Egypt international has been a substitute for the last three matches for the Reds, and has claimed that someone at the club does not want him there.

Salah also revealed that he has told his parents to go to the Brighton game because it is his last match before the African Cup of Nations and that he “doesn’t know what is going to happen” whilst he is there, during the January transfer window.

However, the situation could develop if there is a change in the dugout at Anfield in the coming days or weeks, as the Reds are reportedly looking at potential replacements for Arne Slot.

Liverpool considering Arne Slot replacement

According to Dave OCKOP, Liverpool have their eyes on managers to step in, as an interim or permanent appointment, if they decide to part ways with Slot.

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The Dutch head coach has lost ten of his 23 matches in charge of the club this season, per Transfermarkt, and the Reds are currently eighth in the Premier League with six losses in 15 games.

This latest report claims that Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard has been sounded out as a possible candidate to come in as an interim replacement for Slot, should he be sacked.

The English head coach, who has managed Aston Villa and Rangers, is under consideration to take the top job at Anfield, and it is a move that Salah would love.

Why Mo Salah would love Steven Gerrard at Liverpool

Gerrard, who was described as “a true legend of the game” by Xabi Alonso, played 710 matches for the club during his playing days, per Transfermarkt, and scored 186 goals.

Without trying to sound too cliché, the 45-year-old boss is a manager who would ‘get it’ at Liverpool and arrive as a unifying figure who could create a positive mentality at Anfield again, as a personality already loved by supporters.

Salah, in particular, would love it if Gerrard were appointed as Slot’s replacement because he would know that the Englishman respects and rates him incredibly highly.

Speaking earlier this year, Gerrard named Salah as the one player in history that he would have loved to have played with during his playing days.

As you can hear in the clip above, the Liverpool legend also declared the Egyptian as his favourite player in 2023, which is further evidence of the respect that he has for the left-footed superstar.

Steven Gerrard’s managerial career

Team

Games managed

Points per game

Al-Ettifaq

55

1.33

Aston Villa

40

1.18

Rangers

192

2.15

Liverpool YL

8

2.25

Liverpool U18

24

1.71

Stats via Transfermarkt

Gerrard, as evidenced by the statistics above, is not a proven top-level manager who has won numerous league titles in the major leagues in Europe, but he did enjoy a good spell with Rangers when tasked with managing a dominant team.

He may not be the long-term solution in the dugout for Liverpool, although you never know, but as an interim appointment to steady the ship and repair the club’s seemingly fractured relationship with Salah, it could make a lot of sense.

Getting Salah, who produced 34 goals and 23 assists last season (Sofascore), back onside and at his best could be a better move than any tactical changes that a manager could make to the system, which is why Gerrard could be a shrewd appointment.

Bringing in a head coach who loves the Egypt international and would want to make him a key member of the team again could solve this problem, which has emerged from these latest quotes from Salah, and bring a feel-good factor back to Anfield.

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This could then buy Liverpool time to assess Gerrard’s suitability for the job on a permanent basis, whilst also giving them time to look at and identify a long-term successor to Slot.

Both are versatile batters and they missed out on big scores in Ahmedabad, but they were never going to miss out two Tests in a row

Karthik Krishnaswamy11-Oct-20251:39

‘Jaiswal has to blame himself for the run-out’

A little under an hour of the Delhi Test had elapsed when Yashasvi Jaiswal decided he had had enough of letting Anderson Phillip bowl on his terms. Phillip, at that point, had bowled 5.3 overs and conceded just ten runs.Jaiswal had mostly been away from the strike when Phillip had bowled. He had faced only four balls from him, and shouldered arms to all of them. He had batted watchfully against the other two West Indies seamers as well, and was on 10 off 36 balls. He had left alone 12 of those balls.Now, he decided he was done with all that. Phillip bowled this one full, angled a fair way away from off stump, and may have perhaps expected another leave. Instead, out of seemingly nowhere, came a straight wallop of fearsome wind-up and flat, lethal trajectory. This was no drive with head over the ball; this was an elemental hit with head thrown back. Phillip, following through, was fortunate head was a foot or so wide of the ball’s path.Related

• Stats – Gill level with Kohli, Jaiswal only behind Bradman

• Jadeja, Kuldeep strike after Gill ton propels India to 518

Everything about that shot, and the passage of play leading up to it, was pure Jaiswal. He can leave every third ball he faces. He can make a stadium sit up with a shot of pure violence. He can bat in all sorts of moods and tempos, often in the same innings, to the point where it becomes impossible to define the kind of batter he is in Test cricket.In one sense, though, it’s very, very easy to define him. Jaiswal is a run-scorer. Send him out with bat in hand, anywhere in the world, against any kind of attack, and you can be pretty sure he’ll find a way to score runs.One of many, many ways. Jaiswal has now gone past 70 on 14 occasions in Test cricket, and those innings have come at strike rates ranging from 40.38 – when he made 84 off 208 balls while attempting to save the MCG Test last year – to 141.17 – when he smashed 72 off 51 balls during India’s push to make victory possible in a heavily rain-affected Test against Bangladesh in Kanpur.Those 14 innings have ticked all but two of the ten strike-rate “decades” from the 40s to the 140s. Only the 120s and 130s are still waiting to be achieved.Over the course of three sessions on Friday and a small fraction of one on Saturday, Jaiswal scored 175 at 67.82, and that strike rate, so close to his career strike rate of 66.33, was an indication of just how comfortable he was on a flat Delhi pitch against a modest West Indies attack, scoring briskly while never looking in a hurry or getting too greedy, batting through a whole day’s play without ever looking weary or seeming to suffer dips in focus.We’ve become so used to this that we almost take it for granted, and forget that he’s not yet 24.2:57

Chopra: Gill destined for greatness

The dismissal, in the second over of day two, came first as a shock. Did he really get out, when 200 – even 300, who knows – seemed within reach? But then it began to make sense. If it had to happen, it had to be a run-out. It had to be that particular kind of run-out. It’s one of Jaiswal’s minor vulnerabilities that he often starts running as soon as his bat meets the ball; if he misjudges how firmly he’s struck the ball or how far it is from a fielder, he’s liable to realise this only when he’s already halfway down the pitch.Jaiswal, in short, was looking like only he could get himself out. Through most of day one, the other mode of dismissal that had seemed vaguely likely was a top edge off an over-eager square cut. He had been out like this in Ahmedabad last week, but he seldom misses a chance to attempt the shot, even when he doesn’t have a lot of room to work with.And it gets him a lot of runs, and quick runs. Against pace, he’s scored 399 runs off 243 balls through his Test career with variants of the cut – cut, late cut, upper cut, ramp, dab, steer, as classified in ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball data – while being dismissed five times. That’s an average of 79.80 and a strike rate of 164.19; so what if he’s achieved all that with a control percentage of just over 71?Those numbers are a small window into Jaiswal’s mind. It’s the mind of a batter who understands percentages, who knows that cutting so frequently can lead to plays-and-misses or edges, but understands that he’ll still be batting next ball if he’s played and missed, and that while top edges might occasionally get him out, the odds suggest they are likelier to send the ball flying over or past the slips cordon if he flashes hard enough.If these are indeed the workings of Jaiswal’s mind, it’s a mind fixated not on batting as a pursuit of technical perfection but on batting as a means of scoring runs.”On Jaiswal, I’ll say he’s very clever in terms of his batting,” Ravindra Jadeja said in his press conference at the end of day two. “He knows which bowler to attack and which bowler to play out. His maturity level is very good. It’s not like he looks to hit every bowler. He has a very good idea of which situation to attack in, and at which time to attack.ESPNcricinfo Ltd”I think it’s very good when a batsman knows what shot he needs to play at what time. I think this has contributed a lot to his success, and the fact that he’s made so many big scores, match after match.”Jaiswal has turned five of his seven Test centuries so far into 150-plus scores, and two of them into doubles. The highly memeable helmet-palm with which he greeted his dismissal in Delhi suggested that 175 was a long way short of the number he had set out to put next to his name when Saturday dawned.It fell to his partner, Shubman Gill, to take on the mantle of insatiable run-hooverer.Gill has always had the smarts to know where his run-scoring opportunities lie in any situation. He was just 20, and only in his third Test, when the then India batting coach Vikram Rathour asked him what his plans were if Australia went short to him after lunch on that magical final day at the Gabba.Here’s Rathour’s recollection of that conversation, from this profile of Gill by Nagraj Gollapudi:”And the kid had a great answer. He said that the end [Mitchell] Starc was bowling, it was a shorter boundary on the leg side. So he said, ‘I’m not going to pull from the other end if they bowl short, but I will pull from the end Starc is bowling if they bowl short, because I’m pretty sure that I can clear this boundary most times. If it’s below my shoulder, I’ll look to play it down, but if it’s up, I’ll look to play it over, and if it’s on this [on] side, I will leave. And if it’s on this [off] side, I will maybe play an uppercut.’ […] I told him, ‘Boss, you have it sorted. So do just that, whatever you want to do.’ He had a lot of clarity [about] what he was looking to do. And with logic – he was not just talking nonsense, he was not bluffing his way.”Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal: The mainstays of India’s batting line-up•AFP/Getty ImagesAll that ability and all those smarts, but it took a while for Gill to translate them into consistent run-scoring in Test cricket, which only really began to happen during last year’s five-match home series against England. And it was only this year, in England, that Gill got his first chance to play a full Test series, home or away, on pitches that gave him a chance to think of batting big time and again.In retrospect, it should have surprised no one that he finished that tour with the second-highest bilateral series aggregate by any India batter anywhere, anytime. It’s exactly the kind of thing everyone’s expected from him ever since he was a teenager.For all that, though, he still gives the impression sometimes that he can get bored if the contest isn’t really challenging him. Last week in Ahmedabad, he had been out immediately after reaching his fifty, attempting a reverse-sweep, an echo of his dismissal soon after reaching his hundred in Visakhapatnam last year against England.He’s showing more and more frequently, however, that he can bat in that insatiable Jaiswal way too. He followed Visakhapatnam with the grittiest half-century of his career, a match-winning fourth-innings effort in Ranchi. He followed Leeds this year, where his first-innings dismissal on 147 was one of numerous dismissals of India batters not quite making the bowlers earn their wicket, with a monumental 269 in Birmingham.And now he followed Ahmedabad with a century of ruthless, getting-the-job-done batsmanship. He played his shots, and played them freely because the situation allowed him to, and asked him to, with India building up to a declaration, but he played Shubman Gill shots. He brought out the slog-sweep when the left-arm spinners left the leg-side boundary unprotected. He brought out the back-foot jab either side of point, a shot he nowadays shelves early on if there’s movement for the fast bowlers, but any movement off this day-two Delhi pitch was minimal. He used his feet with aplomb, against spin and medium-pace, and played that pick-up whip over the leg side that he employs so profitably in the shorter formats.1:51

Chopra: WI needed a little more application

Each time he played a shot like this, it seemed less a reaction to the bowling than an expression of what he felt he needed to do at that moment, against a particular bowler who had set a particular field. But he knew exactly whom to take on and whom not to: he scored at above four an over against six of West Indies’ seven bowlers, but just 12 runs off 64 balls from Jomel Warrican, who constantly challenged India’s batters with his deceptive trajectory and the odd instance of square turn.It was the kind of innings Sachin Tendulkar and Mohammad Azharuddin routinely played in home Tests in the 1990s, or that Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman routinely played in the 2000s, or that Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli routinely played in the period from 2016 to 2019, when India played many of their home Tests on traditional Indian pitches that produced big first-innings totals.India went away from those pitches in the 2021-24 period, with the pressure of World Test Championship points, the fear of draws on flat pitches, and the fear of toss-influenced results like Chennai 2021 pushing them to prepare a succession of square turners in home Tests. After going down 3-0 to New Zealand last year and falling prey to the pitfalls of dustbowls, India are now making an effort, as Gill confirmed before this series, to try and restore the balance between bat and ball in their home pitches.Jaiswal and Gill couldn’t have asked for a better time to be batting in home Tests. They missed out on big scores in Ahmedabad, but they were never going to miss out two Tests in a row.